All these Phoenician towns were shocked.

Not long after, the towns near Saros welcomed the envoys of Dionia and made a tough request: to surrender to Dionia immediately, otherwise the army would attack, and the Saros would be their fate!

The actual rulers of these towns, Carthage, either died in battle or were trapped in St. Iberia because of the road being blocked. The municipal officials who lost their command were at a loss and the people were in panic all day long.

…………………………………………

Although Morbar won a naval battle, he was not happy, but he became heavier. It was not because the casualties of the Carthage merchant sailors who served as bait were too high, but because he discovered the strength of the Dionian Navy. Therefore, after he returned to the port of Carthage, when the people cheered for the hard-earned victory of the naval battle, he wrote a letter to the Senate.

In the letter, he briefly described the entire process of this naval battle, and then emphasized that he believed that the Dionian Navy not only surpassed Carthage in overall strength, but also the tactics it implemented were also ahead of Carthage. The training, fighting spirit and ability of the Dionian crew members were also stronger than the Carthage Navy. In a short period of time, the Carthage Navy could not regain the dominance of the western waters of Sicily. If the war continues, it may even lose control of the Africa coast, leaving Carthage directly facing threats from the sea. For the security of Carthage, peace talks with Dionia should be temporarily held to win time, rebuild the Gatai Chi Navy, and formulate new naval tactics for the Dionian Navy and strengthen training so that the dominance of the sea will be regained in the future...

When the content of the letter was read out in the Senate, it caused an uproar in the venue.

The first time someone told the truth so bluntly. Based on Morbar's reputation and status in the navy, what he said was more credible. However, Carthage, who has always claimed to be a "maritime power in the Western Mediterranean", was torn off, which made many veterans very dissatisfied with this, especially when he mentioned "a peace talk with Dionia", which even touched the scales of some people.

The Margonids, led by Pretakuba, criticized Morbar for being too old and completely without the courage of his youth. When both countries had consumed huge resources and gathered such a huge army, and were about to engage in an unprecedented war to determine the fate of the country, he spoke these words that shake people's morale. If he had not known that he had made a lot of contributions to Carthage over the past few decades, he would have thought that he was a traitor of Carthage and wanted to sell off Carthage's interests. Therefore, in such an important war, Morbar, who was already timid in his heart, was no longer worthy of serving as the commander of the Carthage naval army.

The Hannover factions led by Hannover supported Morbar. They highly praised Morbar for his achievements in the past, and whether he knew that saying these words would damage his past prestige, he still bravely said it, which shows that he was a true patriot. Among Carthaginian citizens, there is no more experienced and knowledgeable naval general than Morbar. Even he thinks this way, which shows that the Carthaginian navy is indeed at a disadvantage. In this case, it should take advantage of the victory of a naval battle and before it showed obvious decline, the most correct and selfless approach was to negotiate peace with Dionia.

However, the neutrals showed some differences on this issue. The younger senators, led by El Accra, believed that Carthage had spent a lot of money on this war. When the war was about to be held and the outcome was decided, they suddenly had to negotiate peace. Such actions would not only make the city-state people confused, but also welcome protests from the nobles, and the Senate would not be able to explain to the citizens. Moreover, since Mago became the commander of the Carthage army, he has been with Dionyya

The army has not yet suffered a defeat in the battle (they obviously did not include the night attack of Selinnus). Perhaps the Carthage Navy is worse than the Dionian Navy, but the army commanded by Mago is still stronger than the Dionian Army. Otherwise, why would the Dionian army dare not take the initiative to attack us now? As long as the army in Sicily can win the battle, the entire battle situation will be very different. At that time, it is war and harmony, and we will have more initiatives.

The old senators led by Aisyaruba made a vague suggestion: they could send envoys to the camp of Dionia in the name of peace talks, first understand the attitude of the Dionians towards peace talks and the conditions they put forward, and then take them back to the Senate to discuss.

In fact, Aesyaruba felt that with the strength of the Dionys in diplomacy, under the current situation, the conditions they put forward would be more harsh, and the Carthaginians would not accept it. This would eliminate the attempt of the senate led by the Hannover faction in the Senate to compromise, so that the entire Senate could work together to face the war.

But Hannover's idea was: Ocreton had mentioned peace talks before, but everyone thought he was a joke. But this time, even if he failed to succeed in the end, it could leave a mark in the hearts of the elders. When the situation changes again next time, he would ask him to raise it, then the possibility of success would be very high.

Since "peace with Dionia" is a very important issue, the veterans have been arguing fiercely for several days and cannot make a decision at all.

However, they did not forget the important matters and sent people to remind Morbar in a tactful way: the elders already knew the letters he had written and discussed them. As the commander of the navy, he should devote more energy to how to lead the fleet to protect the route with the western Sicily and to annihilate more warships in Dionia.

Morbar was very unhappy to drive the envoy from the Senate out of the Carthage military port.

…………………………………………

As one of the founders of the Dionian Navy, Secrelian had never lost his achievements in the past 10 years. He was quite famous among the people and was even more popular among the navy. Although Davers later deliberately suppressed him and built four major fleets without a commander, he could not suppress his inner confidence and pride. However, in this naval battle, he was led by the Carthaginians from beginning to end. In the end, the Carthaginians achieved his true goal, but he was still in the dark. It is conceivable how aggrieved and regretful he was in his heart.

After returning from Miloa, he locked himself in the bedroom and stayed alone for most of the day.

At dusk, he walked out of the room and asked the guards to immediately notify the leaders of the Sicily fleet to come for a meeting.

Stefakas and the other three rushed over.

After seeing them, Secreyan immediately told them the news he knew from King Davers.

The three of them looked at each other with indescribable surprise on their faces, especially Stefakas. He never expected that when he led his squadron to chase the Carthage merchant ships in that island-wide sea, not far from him, the Carthages actually boldly used thousands of merchant ships to transport supplies to the Sicilian army, but he did not notice it!

Secrean looked at the three men who were hit hard and said in a deep voice: "This time we encountered a failure, but this is not your fault. The responsibility lies mainly with me. I am too rigid in carrying out the tasks given by His Majesty Davers. Although the Sicilian fleet has a great advantage in strength, it is only concerned with patrolling the Sicilian waters, which is equivalent to changing from the original attack to the defense. It will undoubtedly be very difficult to defend on the vast sea. If we encounter cunning enemies, we will be very passive!

Since its establishment, our Dionysian Navy has won victory even at its weakest moments by bold attacks rather than conservative defenses. Attacking is the nature of our Dionysian Navy, so I decided to change my previous practices and actively launch an offensive against Carthage and its Phoenician Allies, attack their territory in Africa, change our passive situation, and boost the morale of the entire fleet!"

After hearing this, the three of them were excited, but they were also worried: "Sir, your Majesty asks us to concentrate our efforts to block the Sicilian waters. If we attack, we will not be able to cruise anymore. Your Majesty knows that we have not carried out his orders, but-"

"Don't worry!" Secrean said confidently: "I remember His Majesty once said, 'Observation is the best defense.' As long as we conduct a few successful raids, the Carthaginians will worry about their local safety. If they dare not let their fleets stay away from the coast of Afilica at will, it will also make it difficult for the generals of the Carthaginian fleet to judge whether our Sicilian fleet's actions are offensive or cruise, which will be more conducive to our blockade of the Sicilian waters!

In addition, as far as I know, Carthage's territory and allies in Afilica have never been attacked. If we succeed, it will be a great honor, and the Carthaginians will be greatly shocked, and perhaps it will change the current stalemate situation on Sicily and have a more favorable impact on us!"

After being criticized by Davers, Secrean thought behind closed doors for most of the day and thought more comprehensively. He said his thoughts with confidence and emphasized: "I have sent a messenger to Minoa and tell His Majesty my new plan, and I believe he will approve it."

The three squadron commanders were immediately convinced by him, and Stefakas asked eagerly: "Sir, where are you going to attack?"

Seclian pointed his hand at the map that had been prepared on the table.
Chapter completed!